Educational apparatus



P 1968 T. J. GAVEN 3,401,470

EDUCAT IONAL APPARATUS Filed May 4. 1966 I 5 Shets-Sheet 1 F'IG.I

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I00. By M7 20 AGENT 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 T. .J- GAVEN EDUCATIONAL APPARATUSSept. 17, 1968 Filed y 1966 /NV ENTO/? THOMAS J. GA l/EN AGENT 5Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed May 4, 1966 FIG. 6

T E-A CH Y O U R T O U C H L T O T H E 3 T A L K I N G P E N C I 4F IRSTLETTER AND sPEA 5 W I L L [NI/EN TOR THOMAS J." GAVEN AGENT Sept. 17,1968 T. J. GAVEN EDUCATIONAL APPARATUS 5 Sheets$heet 5 Filed May 4, 1966fijllooo i a o o I 23242526l GAVEN lNl/ENTOR THOMAS AGENT United StatesPatent 3,401,470 EDUCATIONAL APPARATUS Thomas J. Gaven, Livingston,N.J., assignor to McGraw- Edison Company, Elgin, Ill., a corporation ofDelaware Filed May 4, 1966, Ser. No. 547,489 15 Claims. (Cl. 35-9) Thisinvention relates to audio visual teaching machines adapted especiallyfor children, and more particularly to such teaching machines whereinthe pupil triggers the machine into its successive operations andresponses by touching a conductive selector pencil to areas of a coverglass'overlying the respective items of information shown to the pupil,In the present description the phrase items of information is utilizedto include the respective lower and upper case letters, numbers, signsand symbols which appear on the keys of a typewriter, and also words,phrases, sentences, pictures, etc.

In the present machine, programmed visual information is presented tothe pupil and audio information related to the visual information isreproduced by a reproducing machine. The audio information as to eachitem may be presented either in the form of instructions or questions tobe followed by the pupil pointing out the correct visual item or,alternatively, the pupil may be called upon to point out the successiveitems of information after which the machine will pronounce and/orexplain the respective items. In either case, the manual selector pencilis disabled while the reproducing machine is in operation so as toenforce a synchronization of the audio information with the selectedvisual items. When the reproducing machine has completed a particularaudio operation it is automatically stopped and the selector pencil isreactivated to enable the pupil to point out a next item in theprogrammed material. These procedures have been found to be highlysuccessful in teaching children as from three to five years of age torecognize, pronounce and learn the meaning of the various keyboardcharacters and of pictures, words and sentences as well as the answersto multiple choice questions, etc.

The broad use in a teaching machine of a selector pencil in the mannerherein described is disclosed and claimed in the pending applicationSer. No. 487,738 of Richard Kobler, filed Sept. 16, 1965, and entitled,Educational Apparatus, now Patent No. 3,363,330, dated Jan. 16, 1968.

A special feature of the present invention resides in the use of a coverglass having transparent conductive areas on the top surface thereofprearranged in relation to the spatial disposition of the exhibiteditems for completing respective control circuits to trigger the machineinto its successive operations in response to the pupil touching theconductive selector pencil to the areas of the cover glass overlying therespective items. Such cover glass with prearranged invisible conductiveareas provides in conjunction with the manual selector pencil a highlysimple and effective control means for triggering a teaching machine ofthe responsive environmental type into its successive operations.

A further special feature of the present invention resides in providinga responsive environment type of teaching machine with a fixed encodingthrough use of a stepping relay to enforce a selection of the items in aworking line in a given sequence. As will appear, the selection may beon a linear basis wherein the-pupil selects the items in successionproceeding along the working line or the selection may be scrambledwherein the items are selected by jumping back and forth along theworking line.

A still further feature of the invention resides in pro- Patented Sept.17, 1968 viding a coding means utilizing a stepping relay of theself-running type and in providing code marks or spots on the sheetbearing the visual items for stopping the relay. In this way any one ormore positions can be skipped in the working line whether the coding ison a linear or scrambled basis to provide a greater flexibility inprogramming the information to be presented to the pupil.

Objects of the invention are to provide a versatile teaching machine ofthe responsive environment type which is of a simple and economicaldesign enabling this type of teaching machine to be sold at a much lowercost than has been heretofore possible.

Another object is to provide the exhibitor of such teaching machine witha transparent cover glass having thereon invisible conductive areas forthe respective items of information, which are activated in a givensequence to trigger the machine into successive operations when therespective areas are touched by a conductive selector device in saidgiven sequence.

Another object is to code such teaching machine to respond to the itemsin a given sequence with the use of a stepping relay.

Another object is to code such teaching machine by means of a steppingrelay of the self-running type which is stopped at particular items ofinformation only when a respective code mark has been placed on thesheet bearing the items.

Another object is to provide an audio visual teaching machine whereinthe cover glass for the exhibitor is provided with invisible conductivesurface areas to be contacted by a conductive selector device to triggerthe machine into its successive operations, and wherein the sheetbearing the visual items of information is provided with conductive codespots to control a self-operating coding means for activating theconductive areas in a predetermined sequence in which the items are tobe selected by the pupil.

These and other objects and features of the invention will be apparentfrom the following description and the appended claims.

In the description of my invention reference is had to the accompanyingdrawings, of which:

FIGURE 1 is a. perspective view of a teaching machine according to theinvention;

FIGURE 1a is a view of the manual selector pencil;

FIGURE 2 is a view similar to FIGURE 1 but with a portion of the cabinetbroken away to show the sheet mounting mechanism;

FIGURE 3 shows a sheet of programmed instruction by way of illustrativeexample;

FIGURE 4 is a view through the front window of the teaching machineshowing the above sheet of programmed instruction positioned so thatline 2 thereof is in the working line position;

FIGURE 5 is a schematic view of circuits and portions of the operatingmechanism according to a first embodiment of the invention;

FIGURE 6 shows a sheet of programmed instruction for a second embodimentof my invention wherein the dots in dotted lines indicate conductivecode spots on the under side of the sheet;

FIGURE 7 is a partial view to enlarge scale of the exhibit window of thesecond embodiment; and

FIGURE 8 is a schematic view of circuits and mechanism according to thesecond embodiment.

The present teaching machine may have a rectangular case 10 providedwith a base 10a and a hinged cover 10b. The cover 10b is provided with asloping front wall 11 having therein a window opening 12 through which apupil can see the programmed visual material. The window is closed by atransparent cover glass indicated at 13. The programmed material may bewritten or printed in successive lines 14 on an elongate sheet 15(FIGURE 3) and may comprise letters, numbers, signs, pictures, words,sentences, etc., representing items of information. Several lines arepreferably shown through the window at the same time, of which thebottom line is the working line for the pupil and of which the linesthereabove are those through which the pupil has already advanced. Themachine is triggered into successive operations with the use of a manualpencil-like selector device 16 which may be any one of several differentforms as far as certain broad features of the invention are concerned.However, the selector device is preferably of a conductive typecomprising a control element or wire 17 having thereon an insulatingcylindrical holder 18 as of plastic. A tip 17a of the wire 17 is exposedat one end and the other end of the wire is connected via a flexibleinsulated lead wire 19 to the machine. Alternatively, the manualselector device may be an ordinary lead encil having a flexibleinsulated lead wire connected to the head end thereof.

The sheet 15 is fed forwardly across the bottom plate 10a and around afront guide roller 20 in a rearward upward direction across the bottomface of the cover glass 13 by means of a sprocket roller 21 engagingsprocket holes 22 in the side borders of the sheet. At the back of thesprocket roller the sheet is projected through a slot 23 in a tubularcontainer 24 to cause the sheet to curl into a roll form as it is fedthereinto. The sprocket roller 21 may be advanced by a hand knob 25 on ashaft extension thereof or may be operated by power driven mechanism asis herein later described.

In a rearward portion of the case 10 there is a reproducing machine 26of a suitable quick start-stop type such as a usualdictation-transcribing machine. Also, in this rearward portion of thecase there is housed the control circuitry and power supply equipmenthereinafter described.

The cover glass 13 is of the type having a transparent conductivecoating of tin oxide on its top surface fired thereon at a hightemperature. Such coated glass is sold for example by the PittsburghPlate Glass Company of Pittsburgh, Pa., under the trademark NESA. In thepresent machine, a cover glass is used having individual areas orsegments 27 of such conductive coating overlying the respective items ofinformation in the working line. Such cover glass is prepared by etchingaway the undesired areas of conductive coating. As shown in FIG- URE 5,the glass 13 has ten conductive areas or segments 27 which extend fromthe bottom edge of the glass into the window area to respective visualitems in the working line; however, the tenth area may be a controlposition for line advance as later described. The conductive segmentsare connected individually by respective leads of a cable 28 to thepoles 29 of a ten-pole double-throw program switch 30. When the switch30 is in its left position shown in FIGURE 5 the conductive segments areconnected progressively from left to right to the successive terminalsof a ten position stepping switch 31 hereingemployed as a code switch.When the conductive segments 27 are so connected to the code switch. themachine is encoded so that the conductive segments 27 will 'be activatedin sequence from left to right on a so-called linear basis. When theswitch 30 is thrown to its rightward position, the conductive segments27 are activated successively in a scrambled sequence depending upon themanner in which the poles of the switch are connected to the individualterminals of the stepping relay. As shown in FIGURE 5, the order ofsuccessive positions when the switch 30 is in its scrambled position, is1, 4, 7, 5, 9, 8, 6, 3, 2 and 10.

If the machine is operated with the switch 30 in its linear position,the record for the reproducing machine 26 is prerecorded withpronunciations, questions and/or explanations pertaining to the visualitems as they appear from left to right along the successive lines ofthe sheet.

If the machine is operated with the switch 30 in its scrambled position,then the record is prerecorded to conform to the scrambled sequence inwhich the visual items are selected by the stepper switch. After makingeach recording pertaining to a visual item the record is recorded with ashort signal of sub-audible frequency, say 50 c.p.s., which is utilizedto stop the reproducing machine automatically at the end of each audiomessage. The operation of the teaching machine is nowdescribed with theswitch 30 being considered to be in its linear position and with thepupil working along line 2 of the sheet 15, as shown in FIGURE 3.

Firstly, the motor switch S isclosed to start the motor M for thereproducing machine 26 and the start switch S is closed momentarily toconnect ground 32 to the base of a transistor Q The stepper switch 31will have been standing in position '10 from the previous operation. Themomentary grounding of the base of the transistor Q cuts off thistransistor and causes a positive voltage pulse to be fed to the controlelement of a silicon controlled rectifier Q The rectifier Q is therebyrendered conductive until its circuit is interrupted. When the rectifierQ becomes conductive the relay K is operated from plus terminal 33through the coil of this relay, rectifier Q and pole 1 of relay K toground 34. Operation of the relay K shifts its pole 1 from lower toupper contact to remove the ground connection from the manual selectorpencil 16 and to connect the terminal 33 through the winding 35 of thestepper relay 31 to ground 36. Activation of the winding 35 draws thepawl 37 downwardly against the resisting force of a tension spring 38 toadvance a ratchet 39 by a one-tenth interval whereby to move the stepperswitch ahead to position 1. The invisible conductive segment 27 in thenumber 1 position is therefore connected to the base of transistor Q viapole 1 left contact of the switch 30 and the terminal number 1 of thestepping relay 31. The operation of the relay K also connects ground 36through pole -2 to clutch solenoid 40 to start the reproducer 26. Theprerecorded message, which is picked up by the reproducer head H fromthe record R on the turntable T and fed through amplifier 42 to speaker43, may say See if you can find the letter i. At the end of this messagethe reproducer picks up a subaudible 5O c.p.s. control signal which isfed through a band pass filter 44 (having a pass band from 45 to 55c.p.s.) amplifier 45 and relay K The energizing of relay K removesground 34 from relay K to drop the latter. The dropping of relay Kproduces the following results: (1) deactivates stepper Winding 35 tocause the pawl 37 to be cocked by the spring 38 for a next operation ofthe stepping relay, (2) restores ground to the manual selector pencil16, and (3). drops the clutch solenoid 40 at its pole 2 to stop thereproducer.

When the pupil touches the tip of the manual selector pencil 16 to theletter i, ground 36 is connected through pole 1 of relay K pencil 16,first conductive segment 27, pole 1 left contact of switch 30, and firstterminal of stepper relay 31 to the base of transistor Q causing thetransistor to render rectifier Q conductive to operate relay K fromterminal 33 through switch of relay K to ground 34. Operation of therelay K again activates .the stepper winding 35 to advance the stepperrelay to position 2 and it activates clutch solenoid 40 of thereproducing machine 26 to restart the reproducer. In this case thereproducer may give the message "Now find the letter s. At the endof-this message the prerecorded subaudible signal is again reproduced todrop the relay K The dropping of the relay K again deactivates thestepper winding 35 to cock the pawl 37 for a next operation of thestepping relay, restores ground 36 to the manual selector pencil 16, andstops the reproducer. When the pupil touches the letter s the machinegoes through another cycle as described above. The teaching machine thenawaits the pupil to select the 'bulls-eye after the letter s. When thepupil touches the bulls-eye the machine may say You have spelled theword is. Pronounce it and proceed to the next character. Thus, in thismanner the pupil proceeds from left to right one step at a timeresponding to the audio information called out by the reproducer.Alternatively; the reproducer could give the audio message after thepupil touches each successive segment.

When the pupil has advanced through position 9 the stepper switch 31will have been advanced to the terminal 10. The attendant may nowadvance the sheet one line by the knob and again press the start switchS to start the pupil at position 1 on the next line the same as abovedescribed. Alternatively, the tenth position on the sheet may be markedline advance and the record R may be prerecorded with a line advancecontrol signal say at 120 c.p.s. When the pupil after proceeding throughthe first nine positions of the working line touches the tenth positionwith the tip of the selector pencil 16, ground 36 is applied to the baseof the transistor Q, the same as before, to step the relay 3 1 toposition 1 and to start the reproducer. The reproducer may say We willnow proceed to the next line. Find the capital letter T. Immediatelyafter this message the reproducer not only picks up the subaudible 50c.p.s. signal to stop the reproducer but also it picks up the subaudible120 c.p.s. signal which is fed through a band pass filter 44a (having apass band from 115 to 125 c.p.s.), amplifier A and solenoid K Theresultant operation of the soluenoid K advances a ratchet wheel Wcoupled to the knob 25 to advance the knob by one step and bring line 3into the working line position.

Since the automatic line advance'occurs as :a result of a prerecordedline advance signal on the record R, the audio visual material presentedto the pupil may be programmed to cause the line advance to occur aftera message is given at any position in the working line. Further, themessage preceding the line advance may 'be with reference to an item ofinformation Without giving the pupil any advance information as to anautomatic advance of the paper sheet to the next line if it is sodesired.

In line 3 of the program sheet shown in FIGURE 3 there is spelled thewords THE HOUSE followed by a picture of a house to teach a child toassociate the words with their picture images. Line 4 shows individualwords in each successive position to teach a child to read words andsentences.

When a voice switch46 is thrown to its left position normal ground 47 isremoved from the speaker 43 to place the reproducer in a mutedcondition. The pupil now proceeds along each line touching the coverglass over each character or word as he reads it. No sound is producedbecause the speaker is disabled but as he touches the cover glass overeach successive character or word he is signalled by the lighting of alamp L The lamp is lit from the voltage source 48 through pole 3 of thevoice switch 46 and pole 2 of the relay K to ground 36. In fact, untilhe receives the light signal he knows he has not touched the rightsegment in his progression along each line. If he should come to a wordthat he cannot pronounce say syzygy in position 7 of line 5 he willfirst touch a mute segment 49 which may be conveniently located in acentral upper portion of the window 12. In so doing he connects ground36 through the selector pencil 16, mute segment 49 and pole 2 of voiceswitch 46 to relay K Relay K is then activated from the plus terminal 50and obtains a hold circuit over its own switch contacts and the switchof relay K to ground 34. This When the program switch 30 is thrown tothe right the sequence of the positions along a working line that thepupil must follow is scrambled'as previously stated on page 8. Aprogramming for line 6 of the sheet shown on FIGURE 3, when the programswitch 30 is in the scrambled position, may be as follows: When thepupil touches the first conductive segment the reproducer may say Youhave touched the question mark, and now I am going to ask you a seriesof questions. See if you can find the lower case a. When the pupil hasfound this letter in position 4, the reproducer says, What number comesafter the number 1? The pupil must now find the number 2 in position 7before the machine proceeds to the next character, etc. Thus, in thescrambled mode the machine no longer works one segment at a time fromleft to right but appears to skip segments randomly as well as move fromright to left. This is accomplished without programming the sheet otherthan to arrange the items of information according to the randomsequence of the stepper relay.

The sheet may also be programmed so that the program switch 30 will beshifted automatically between linear and scrambled positions as thesheet is advanced from any selected line to the next. Thus, the switch30 may be an overcenter type actuatable into linear position by anelectromagnet E and into a scrambled position by electromagnet E Theelectromagnets have a control switch E Engaging the bottom side of thesheet is a pair of contacts B A source of potential E, is connectableselectively via the contacts E and switch E to the electromagnets E andE When it is desired to shift the program switch 30 from whateverposition it is occupying to the other position responsive to a lineadvance of the sheet, the new line on the sheet is provided with aconductive mark E such as a spot of conductive ink which will come intoregistration with the contacts B when the sheet is advanced and causeelectrical connection to be made between the contacts. Thus, a spot Eappearing in line 1 has shifted the program switch 30 from the scrambledto the linear position as follows: When the sheet is placed in themachine to bring the line 1 into the working line position a circuit wascompleted for the electromagnet E via the battery E the contacts E theelectromagnet E and the control switch E at its right contact. If theattendant wants any subsequent line to be programmed on a scrambledbasis a conductive dot E will be placed in that line. Such subsequentconductive dot will cause the electromagnet E to be activated via thecontrol switch E at its left contact. Further, the placement of aconductive spot 'E on any following line would return the programming toa linear basis, etc.

The second embodiment of my invention shown in FIGURES 6 to 8 dilfersprimarily from my first embodiment in that in each line, whether it isprogrammed on a linear or scrambled basis, any number of positions maybe skipped as may be desired. This is accomplished by using a codingmeans in the form of a self-running stepping relay having a stop circuitfor each switch position, and by placing conductive code dots on theteaching sheet for closing the respective stop circuits only atv thosepositions where it is desired to activate the reproducing machine. Forinstance, if a word was being shown the letters may be in successivepositions but a code spot would be placed at the position following theword with the result that the machine would not be activated until thepupil touched the selector pencil to the position at the end of theword. When so activated the machine would spell, pronounce and/orexplain the word. This type of coding lends itself also to multiplechoice questions and answers since only the correct question and answerwould be provided with a code spot to prevent activation of the machineuntil the correct question or answer had been selected.

FIGURE 6 shows an illustrative program sheet for the second embodimentof my invention. Preferably, the sheet is provided with very fine crosslines 51 to define rectangular areas 52 in which the individual items ofinformation are to be written or printed, there being for example areasfor twenty-three items on each line of the sheet. On the back side ofthe sheet there are placed code dots 53 as of conductive ink todesignate the successive positions to be selected by the pupil for audioresponses. The code dots are placed preferably between the characterlines with each dot representing the respective character directly aboveit. The back side of the sheet may have very fine cross lines definingsmall square areas to guide the instructor in placing the code dots whenhe programs a sheet.

FIGURE 7 shows a pair of spring wire contacts 55 inset in the window 12for each of the twenty-three code dot positions in a working line. Eachcode dot 53 of the working line on the program sheet will electricallybridge the respective pair of wire contacts to close a respective stopcontrol circuit for the stepping relay as will appear. When the sheet isadvanced to bring a new line in the working line position the code dots53 of the new line will close another group of stop control circuits,assuming of course that the programming of the next line is different.The wire contacts 55 are held in cantilever fashion between the frontborder portion of a base plate 56 and a respective clamping bar 57 bothmade of suitable insulating material. The base plate is provided withrespective elongated apertures 58 to clear the upwardly curved free endportions of the wire contacts. The contacts are biased upwardly toengage the under side of the sheet with a light pressure.

In the following detailed description of the operation of the secondembodiment of my invention reference is made to the schematic diagram ofFIGURE 8. When a program condition switch 59 is in a number 1 or recordposition the instructor can record an audio program to fit the visualprogram on the sheet 51. First, he will close a start switch S to startthe motor 54 and will then throw the record-reproduce switch 60 to itsrecord position. Before beginning the recording operation he will notethe visual items in the order in which they are to be taken up in eachline on the program sheet, giving careful attention as to whether thesequence is on a linear or scrambled basis and as to the placement ofthe code dots 53 for each line, and will then record successivepronunciations of characters or words and of explanations, etc., to fitthe respective items where the code dots are located. The recording isaccomplished by pressing the record start button 61 and then speakinginto the microphone M. As the start button 61 is pressed DC. power issupplied from rectifier 62 to a motor clutch solenoid K and relay Kthrough respective diodes 63 and 64 and the record switch 65 to ground66. The solenoid K closes the clutch 67 to start the turntable 68carrying a disk record 69. Operation of the relay K opens a switch 70 todisconnect the recorded-reproducer head 71 from the rectifier 62, hereinutilized as a 120 c.p.s. signal source. The microphone M is connectedfrom ground 72 through pole 1 left contact of the record-reproduceswitch 60 to the input of an amplifier A. The output of this amplifieris connected via pole 2 left contact of the record-reproduce switch 60to the recorder-reproducer head 71. Thus, the voice energy from themicrophone is amplified and recorded on the record 69. The instant theattendant release the start button 61 power to the solenoid K is cut offto disengage the clutch 67 and the relay K is dropped to connect the 120c.p.s. signal source through an RC filter 73 to the recorder head 71.The drop out of the solenoid K is however delayed for a moment by acondenser 74 connected thereacross, with the result that the 120 cyclesignal from the rectifier 62 i recorded on the record 69 for a momentbefore the record is stopped. The recorded 120 c.p.s. signal is utilizedto stop automatically the drive of the turntable 68 at the end 8 of thereproduction of each recorded message as is later described.

To place the machine into a teaching condition the instructor shifts therecord-reproduce switch 60 to reproduce position which also activatesthe relay K so that the 120 c.p.s. signal source will be disconnectedpermanently from the reproducer head so long as the machine is in theteaching condition. If the programmed material on the sheet 51 is on alinar basis the instructor shifts the condition switch 59 to its number2 position. At this moment a self-running stepping relay 76 is standingin its far end or number 26 position by reason of a ground 77 being thenconnected through the pole of deck number 3 of the stepping relay-hereinreferred to as pole number 3-to ac tivate an electronic switch 79 from aplus terminal 80. When this electronic switch is so activated it causesa relay K to be also activated from the plus terminal 80. Relay K wasthen activated from plus terminal 81 through pole 2 second contact ofcondition switch 59, and the switch of relay 13 to ground 82. Operationof the relay K opened its number 2 pole to break the circuit for thestepping relay coil 76c running from plus terminal 82 via stepper switch83, pole 2 of relay K and ground 84. The stepping relay is thereforeheld up in position number 26 in which it stands with the coil 760 beingin an inactivated state.

Upon inserting the programmed sheet 51 into the machine and then closingthe cover 1%, a switch is opened by the closing of the cover to breakmomentarily the circuit of the electronic switch 79. The switch 75 isopened momentarily by a cam button 10bc on the cover 10b moving againsta press lever 78 operable against the switch. However, as the cover isopened the cam knob 10bc lifts the lever 78 momentarily away from theswitch without operating it. The momentary breaking of the circuit ofthe electronic switch 79 which occurs as the cover is closed causes therelay K to be dropped momentarily which in turn drops the relay K toclose its number 2 pole switch. The relay K thus activates the steppingrelay coil 76c causing it to draw downwardly or cock the pawl 76pagainst the force of the spring 76s. In a slight further downwardmovement of the pawl after it has engaged the next succeeding tooth of aratchet wheel 76r the stepper switch 83 is opened to release the pawland cause the ratchet wheel to be advanced one step by the spring 76s.This step advance of the ratchet wheel moves all five decks of thestepping relay through the end of their cycle to their number 1positions. Since a code dot 53 is locatedin the number 1 position of theworking line a circuit is established immediately from plus terminalthrough electronic switch 79, pole 3, first contact of stepping relay76, first wire spring contacts 55-1, first code dot 53-1 and ground 85to operate the relay K Operation of the relay K activates the relay K toremove ground 84 from the stepping relay coil 76c causing the steppingrelay to be advanced to the number 1 position.

The instructor will tell the pupil to touch the selector pencil 86 tothe cover glass 13 below the first letter (T) within the area defined bythe respective scallop 12:, there being twenty-three such scallops alongthe bottom edge of the window for the twenty-three possible charactersin a working line. On the top surface of the cover glass running fromthe respective scalloped areas to the bottom edge of the cover glass arerespective conductive segments 88 of transparent material as beforedescribed. These conductive segments are connected respectively,proceeding from left to right, to the corresponding terminals of deck 1of the stepping relay 76, this being the linear basis hereinbeforedescribed. The conductive segments are however connected on a scrambledbasis to the terminals of deck 2 of the stepping relay 76 as is laterfurther described. Thus, when the pupil touched the selector pencil tothe first segment 88-1 a circuit was completed from ground 84 via pole 2right contact of relay K pole 1 of relay K selector pencil 86,conductive segment 88-1, pole 1, first terminal of stepping relay 76,pole 1 second contact of condition switch 59 and resistor 87 to plusterminal 81. The resultant grounding of the base of transistor Q turnsoff the transistor to feed a positive voltage pulse to a siliconcontrolled diode Q rendering it conductive and activating relay K fromplus terminal 81 through pole 2 of relay K and ground 89. The.energizing of relay K connects ground 90 through pole 1 of this relay,pole 1 lower contact of relay K and coil of relay K to plus terminal ofrectifier 62. Operation of the relay K17 engages the clutch 67 startingthe reproducer turntable 68 to cause the reproducer to state the firstrecorder audio message which may be merely. a pronunciation of theletter T. The shift of pole 2 of relay. K from its right to leftcontacts removed ground 84 from the manual selector pencil 86 to disablethe pencil while the audio message was being given, and connected ground84 to the stepping relay coil 76c, thereby activating the stepping relaycoil to cause it to cock the pawl 76 into engagement withthe next toothof th ratchet 76,. This prepares the stepping relay for a next advancewhen ground 84 is removed from the coil 76a.

The closing of pole 3 of relay K when this relay was operated connects a115 volt A.C. source through pole 3 second contact of the conditionswitch 59, pole 1 of relay K motor '91 and return line 92. Also, thissame voltage source is now connected through pole 3 second contact ofthe condition switch 59 and the switch of relay K through clutchsolenoid 93 and return line 92 to engage a clutch 94. The resultantoperation of motor 91 and engagement of clutch 94 causes a pointer band95 to be moved in the direction of arrow 96. The pointer band has alight aperture 95a and is positioned. between a long fluorescent lamp 97and the sheet 51. In the home position of the pointer band the lightaperture 95a is positioned to the left of the first items in therespective lines on the sheet 51. When the light aperture 95a reaches aposition below the first item in the working line, a pointer band switch98 connected via a mechanical coupling 99 (diagrammatically shown) tothe drive roller 95r for the pointer band 95, is moved to its number 1position. This movement of the pointer band switch 98 to the number 1position and the concurrent movement of the pole 4 of the stepper switchto the corresponding number 1 position completes a circuit for the relayK from plus terminal 100 through switch 98 at its first position, pole 4position 1 of stepping relay 76, switch of relay K which now standsoperated in view of the presence of code dot 53-1--to ground 82.Operation of relay K removes power at its number 1 pole from the pointerband motor 91 to stop the pointer band with the light aperture below thefirst item in the working line. When the reproducer has stated the audiomessage pertaining to the character in the number 1 position, it isstopped by the 120 c.p.s. signal picked up from the record disk 69 thesame as in my first embodiment. For instance, the 120 c.p.s. signalactivates the relay K through a band pass filter 44 and amplifier 42.The resultant shift of pole 1 of the relay K from its lower contactremoves ground 90 from the clutch solenoid K to disengage the clutch 67,and the opening of pole 2 of the relay K drops the rectifier Q back intoits nonconductive state--in view of pole 2 of relay K already standingopen-to drop relay K The resultant shift of pole 2 of relay K from leftto right contacts removes ground 84 from the stepping relay coil 76callowing the spring 76s to advance the relay to the next position. Sincea code dot 53-2 is present in the second position, the relay K is againactivated to activate the relay K to open its pole number 2 switch andremove power from the stepping coil 76c, leaving the stepping relaystopped in the number 2 position. Not until the pupil touches the secondsegment 88-2 with the pencil 86 will the relay K be again activated tocock the pawl of the stepping relay for a next operation and to startthe reproducer to give a second audio message. Again, at the end of theaudio message the relay K is operated to drop 10 the relay K which inturn again activates the stepping relay to move to the next position,etc.

The machine may thus spell the first word This letterby-letter. Theaudio machine when the pupil touches the last letter s may now pronouncethe letter s followed by pronunciation of the word This. Following thepronunciation of the word the stepping relay is again activated. Thistime, there being no code dot in position number 5 after the word Thisthe relay K is not activated as a result of the stepping relay movingthrough the number 5 position. At the end of the step advance to thenumber 5 position the closure of the stepper switch 83 provides powerimmediately to the stepping coil 760 from the plus terminal 82 throughpole 2 of relay K and ground 84 whereby to cock the pawl 76p for a nextstep advance. When at the end of the stroke the stepper switch 83 isopened thte spring 76s returns the pawl to cause the stepping switch tobe advanced to the number 6 position. There being a code spot 53-6 invthe number 6 position the relay K is activated to cause the steppingrelay. to be again stopped in the manner hereinbefore described.

Although the pointer band is advanced to the position of the steppingrelay when the pupil touches the corresponding segment 88 with theselector pencil 86, the pointed band is not advanced step-by-step withthe stepping relay when the relay moves continuously through a series oftwo or more positions before it is stopped. For instance, after theaudio message is given responsive to the pupil touching the segment88-4, the relay K is dropped to open pole 2 at its left contact to movethe stepping relay to the number 5 position. There being no conductivesegment in the number 5 position the relays K and K are not operatedwhen this position is reached with the result that the stepping relaycontinues on to the number 6 position. During the movement from position4 to position 6 the relay K is never operated and the pointer band motor91 is standing still, leaving the pointed aperture 9511 back in thenumber 4 position.

When the pupil touches the segment 88-6, the relay K is operated tosupply power via pole 3 thereof and pole 1 of relay K to the pointerband motor 91 and also via the switch of relay K to the clutch solenoid93. As the pointer band is advanced the switch 98 is moved insynchronization therewith. As the switch 98 moves through position 5 therelay K remains inactivated because the pole member 4 of the stepperrelay has been advanced ahead to position 6. However, when the switch 98reaches position 6 the relay K is operated via position 6 of the pointerband switch 98, pole 4, position 6 of the stepping relay 76 and theswitch of relay K to ground 82. The operation of the relay K opens itscontact at pole 1 to stop the pointer band motor 91. It does not matterwhether the pointer band has reached position 6 before or after theaudio message from the reproducer is completed because if the audiomessage is completed beforehand, the opening of pole 2 of relay K leavesthe relay K still operated through pole 2 of relay K When the pointerband switch 98 reaches position 6 the relay K is operated to drop therelay K to advance the stepping switch to the next position. Thisadvance of the stepping relay drops the relay K which in turn drops therelay K When the stepping relay 76 is advanced to the end terminalnumber 24, pole 5 of the stepping relay connects ground 101 to relays Kand K causing them to be activated from the plus terminal 102.Activation of the relay K advances the ratchet 103 by one step toadvance the sheet 51 to bring the next line in the working lineposition. Activation of the relay K opens the circuit of the clutchsolenoid 93 disengaging the clutch 94 and enabling the spring 104 toreturn the pointer band back to home position where the pointer aperture9511 will stand one step to the left of the first character position onthe sheet 51. Since the stepping relay advances through positions 24 and25 without stopping (there being no code spots 53 on the sheet '51 inthese positions) the 1 1 terminals 24 and 25 of the fifth deck areconnected by jumper 105 to provide additional time for the sheet to beadvanced and the pointer band to be returned.

If the pupil wants to cut oflf the audio messages to do a so-calledsilent reading of the programmed material, the voice switch 106 isthrown to the left to remove the normal ground 107 from the speaker 43,as in the first embodiment. This will supply power to a lamp 108 whenthe relay K is operatedwhich is the condition reached when the machineis waiting for the pupil to touch the activated character segment. Thelamp 108 is activated from the plus terminal of rectifier 62 via pole 3of switch 106, pole 1 lower contact of relay K and pole 1 of relay K toground 90. The lamp 108 lights a voice segment 109 exposed to the pupilwhich may be for example located on the cover glass as in the firstembodiment. If the pupil wants to hear the next audio message he touchesthe selector pencil 86 t the voice segment 109 which applies groundthrough pole 2 of switch 106 to relay K and through poles 2 and 1 ofswitch 106 to the speaker 43. The relay K is operated from plus terminal110 to apply ground 89 to the relay and speaker until both the relay Kis operated (at the end of the audio message) and relay K is operated bythe stepper relay coming to a position where there is a code dot 54.

When the condition switch 59 is shifted to its number 3 or programposition, pole number 1 disconnects the first deck of the stepping relayand connects the pole of the second deck to the transistor Q The leadline connections of the terminals of deck number 2 to the conductivesegments 88 are scrambled so that when the stepper relay is advancedstep-by-step the segments will be selected in a predetermined sequencejumping back and forth to different items in the working line accordingto the particular programming. The deck '3 of the stepping relay againoperates the same as before. Deck number 4 is likewise connected thesame as before by reason of a jumper 111 between terminals 2 and 3 ofpole 2 of condition switch 59. Pole number 3 of the condition switch 59in moving from position 2 to position 3 disconnects the 115 volt A.C.voltage source so that this source is no longer available either to thepointer band motor 91 or the clutch solenoid 93. This is done so as todisable the pointer band when the teaching machine is conditioned toselect the successive items on a scrambled basis.

The embodiments of my invention herein particularly shown and describedare intended to be illustrative and not necessarily limitative of myinvention since the same are subject to changes and modificationswithout departure from the scope of my invention, which I endeavor toexpress according to the following claims.

I claim:

1. In a teaching machine: the combination of a window having a coverglass, means for exhibiting items of information through said window,transparent conductive surface areas on said cover glasspredeterminately located relative to the items to be exhibited, a manualselector device of a pencil-like form having a conductive tip andadapted to be held in the hand by the pupil and to be pointed to saidrespective items in touching contact with said respective conductiveareas to select the respective items of information, means in saidmachine for resp-ond ing to selection of said successive items, andcircuit means including said manual selector device and respectiveconductive surface areas for causing said responding means to besuccessively operated as said items are successively selected.

2. The teaching machine set forth in claim 1 wherein said respondingmeans comprises a reproducing machine including a record mediumprerecorded with individual messages for pronouncing and/or makingstatements relating to said successive items, means for starting saidreproducing machine responsive to the pupils selection of saidsuccessive items, and means for stopping said reproducing machineautomatically at the end of each prerecorded message.

3. The teaching machine set forth in claim 1 wherein said respondingmeans comprises a pointer means successively activatable to indicatesaid successive items, and means for successively activating saidpointer means responsive to the pupils selection of said successiveitems.

4. The teaching machine set forth in claim 1 comprising a coding meansincluding a stepping code relay for requiring said items to be selectedin a predetermined sequence to produce successive activations of saidresponding means.

5. The teaching machine set forth in claim 4 including an exhibitormeans for presenting successive lines of items of information in aworking line position within said window, said cover glass having saidconductive surface areas for the respective items in said working line,separate lead line connections from said code switch to said respectivesurface areas for activating the surface areas in a sequence determinedby said line connections, and means to start said responding means whenan activated surface area is touched conductively by said manualselector device.

6. The teaching machine set forth in claim 4 including a sheet havingsuccessive lines of said items of information thereon, means forshifting said sheet to bring respective lines of said items in a workingline position, said cover glass having said individual conductivesurface areas only for the respective items in said working line, andwherein said stepping code relay is of the self-running type having astop circuit for each item in said working line position, said sheethaving code marks thereon for each line for closing only selected stopcircuits whereby to cause said stepping relay to stop only at selecteditems in the working line, separate lead iline connections between saidstepping relay and said conductive surface areas for activating thesurface areas corresponding to the positioning of said stepping relaywhen the relay is stopped, and means operative when an activated surfaceis touched by said selector device for starting said respondmg means andfor restarting said stepping relay when the responding means is stopped.

7. The teaching machine set forth in claim 6 wherein said code marks aredots of conductive material on the back side of said sheet and whereinsaid stop circuits have respective pairs of switch contacts engagingsaid sheet for registration with said respective dots.

8. In a teaching machine: the combination of means for exhibiting itemsof information at intervals along a given line, a manual pencil-likeselector device to be held by the hand of the pupil, a reproducingmachine having a record medium bearing successive prerecorded messagesto pronounce and/or make statements relating to respective items in saidline selected in a prescribed sequence, a coding means including arecycling stepping relay having at least as many switch positions in acycle as the number of items in said line, means in said machine foradvancing said stepping relay by steps as the tip of said selectordevice is placed at said respective items in said sequence, meanscontrolled by said stepping relay for producing successive activationsof said reproducing machine in correspondence with the pupils selectionof said respective items, a sheet bearing said items of informationwherein said stepping relay is of the self-running type having a stopcircuit for each position of the relay effective when the stop circuitis closed to stop the relay, and wherein said coding means includes apair of switch contacts in each stop circuit engaging the underside ofsaid sheet, conductive code marks on said sheet only at selectedpositions where it is desired to close the respective stop circuit, andmeans to cause the activating means for said reproducing machine to berendered operative when said stepping relay is stopped and the pupilplaces the tip of said selector device at the item corresponding to theposition in which said relay is stopped.

9. The teaching machine set forth in claim 8 including a pointer meansadvanceable along the line of items being shown to a pupil, and meansoperative while said relay is in a stopped condition for advancing saidpointer means to the item corresponding to the position in which saidrelay is stopped when the pupil places the tip of said selector deviceat said corresponding item.

10. The teaching machine set forth in claim 9 including means controlledby said reproducing machine and said pointer means for restarting saidstepping relay only when the pointer means has been advanced to saidcorresponding item and the audio message from the reproducing machine iscompleted.

11. In a teaching machine: the combination of a window having a coverglass, means for exhibiting successive lines of items of informationthrough said window in a Working area, separate transparent conductivesurface areas on the outer surface of said cover glass located inpredetermined relation to the items of information within said workingarea, a manual pencil-like selector device having a conductive tip and aflexible lead line connection to said machine for selecting saidrespective items by touching the tip of the selector device to theconductive areas associated with said respective items, a code meansincluding a stepping relay for requiring the items in the working areato be selected in a predetermined sequence, and means responsive toselecting a predetermined item within said working area for presenting anew set of items within said area.

12. The teaching machine set forth in claim 11 wherein said steppingrelay has a first switch deck connected linearly to said conductivesurface areas to require the items in said working area to be selectedin a sequence proceeding progressively across said window, wherein saidstepping relay includes a second switch deck connected I in a scrambledsequence to said conductive surface areas, and a program selector switchfor selectively connecting 14 either said first or second switch decksin circuit with said coding means.

13. The teaching machine set forth in claim 11 wherein said respectiveitems are carried on a sheet and the code stepping relay is of theself-running type including a stop circuit for each switch positionthereof and respective pairs of switch contacts in said stop circuitspositioned in contact with said sheet in registration with saidrespective items, and conductive code spots on said sheet only at thepredetermined items to be selected by the pupil for bridging the pairsof switch contacts and stopping the stepping relay at said predetermineditems.

14. The teaching machine set forth in claim 12 including electromagneticmeans for operating said program switch, code marks associated withselected ones of said lines, and circuit means controlled according towhether a code mark is associated with a given line as the line isexhibited for operating said program switch.

15. The combination set forth in claim 14 wherein said exhibited itemsare carried by a sheet, including stepping means for advancing saidsheet one line at a time, and wherein said circuit means for operatingsaid electromagnetic means includes a pair of switch contacts engagingsaid sheet and wherein said code marks are on said sheet forinterconnecting said contacts as a preselected line is brought intoexhibition by said stepping means for operating said electromagneticmeans and shifting the program switch from one position to the other.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,281,959 11/1966 Kobler et al.359 3,314,166 4/1967 Styes 35-9 EUGENE R. CAPOZlO, Primary Examiner.

W. W. NIELSEN, Assistant Examiner.

1. IN A TEACHING MACHINE: THE COMBINATION OF A WINDOW HAVING A COVERGLASS, MEANS FOR EXHIBITING ITEMS OF INFORMATION THROUGH SAID WINDOW,TRANSPARENT CONDUCTIVE SURFACE AREAS ON SAID COVER GLASSPREDETERMINATELY LOCATED RELATIVE TO THE ITEMS TO BE EXHIBITED, A MANUALSELECTOR DEVICE OF A PENCIL-LIKE FORM HAVING A CONDUCTIVE TIP ANDADAPTED TO BE HELD IN THE HAND BY THE PUPIL AND TO BE POINTED TO SAIDRESPECTIVE ITEMS IN TOUCHING CONTACT WITH SAID RESPECTIVE CONDUCTIVEAREAS TO SELECT THE RESPECTIVE ITEMS OF INFORMATION, MEANS IN SAIDMACHINE FOR RESPONDING TO SELECTION OF SAID SUCCESSIVE ITEMS, ANDCIRCUIT MEANS INCLUDING SAID MANUAL SELECTOR DEVICE AND RESPECTIVECONDUCTIVE SURFACE AREAS FOR CAUSING SAID RESPONDING MEANS TO BESUCCESSIVELY OPERATED AS SAID ITEMS ARE SUCCESIVELY SELECTED.